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jtotheizzoe:

Louisiana Senator Wants to Know if E. Coli Could Evolve Into a Human

A heroic teacher sat before Louisiana state senator Mike Walsworth and attempted to describe an amazing experiment that demonstrates the truth and beauty of the theory of natural selection. I call her a “hero” because she somehow didn’t flip the table over at 0:50.

She attempts to explain how Richard Lenski has been growing E. coli bacteria, diluting them every day into new liquid food, observing their constant change and adaptation along the way, allowing their fast reproduction to accelerate our observation of evolution. It is the single most elegant proof of evolution that I know of in biology.

Then, he asks her if they could evolve into a human.

We share a common ancestor, billions of years ago. That doesn’t mean they are our ancestors. Trees of life have branches. Two leaves on opposite sides of a tree do not grow from the same twig, but they originated from the same seed. This is an important thing to GET when it comes to evolution. 

So no, E. coli could not evolve into a human. Nor could chimpanzees, or dinosaurs. That’s right. Shockingly, this guy would have more chance of becoming a chicken:

Keep up the good fight for science, folks. You’re the next generation of thinkers. Given a little time, you can help the world evolve into a more science literate place.

(via Gawker)